Jerichow
Directed by Christian Petzold, Jerichow (2008) is a dark yet intriguing portrayal of a young German soldier’s struggle to cope with life after his mother’s death. At the beginning of the film, the young soldier Thomas (Benno Furmann) is unemployed and out of cash. He then obtains a seasonal job through the unemployment agency as […]
Liberalität ist anstengend
In the April 3, 2010 issue of Der Spiegel there was an article interviewing Bundesverfassungsrichter Di Fabio about the increasing controversy about freedom of religion within Germany concerning the Muslim communities. He claims that the modern concerns about religion, and the increasing involvement of the more secular communities within this debate, stem from the prominence […]
The German Way Expat Blog
The German Way Expat Blog is a website with entries written by four Americans living in Germany and raising families. Some topics addressed include the raising of multilingual children and the integration or non-integration of expat communities, though the website also covers a wide variety of topics ranging from politics to history. This blog is […]
Multicultural misunderstandings: Impressions from a Canadian debate and a few lessons for Germany
In his article entitled “Multicultural Misunderstands: Impressions from a Canadian debate and a few lessons from Germany”, Lars von Törne addresses how much of the Western World has started to believe the misconception that multiculturalism is a failed concept and why such a view is incorrect. To start, Törne focuses on the extent of the […]
A Handfull of Stars
Rafik Schami’s young adult novel A Hand Full of Stars details three years of a young Syrian boy’s life as he attempts to come into his own during the turbulent decades that ensued after Syrian independence in 1946. The book shows the difficulties of life under an unstable government, whose leadership was constantly changing due […]
Plantation Memories. Episodes of everyday racism
In Grada Kilomba’s Plantation Memories: Episodes of Everyday Racism, the Black male subject has been further complicated by the persistent cultivation of the Black female subject, who, in the case of Kilomba is also directly engaged in the process of knowledge production, like so many of her female counterparts. Kilomba writes, “ this study seeks […]
Homesickness
Homesickness by Ingo Cesaro they gather in waiting rooms and on train platforms like migratory birds in autumn loudly gesticulating as the great journey were about to begin they embrace when the long distance express leaves the station without them and weep their way back into cold reality
Berlin appears divided over the presence of US nuclear warheads
This Article discusses the recent nuclear treaty signed by the United States and Russia. As the world moves towards a reduction of their nuclear arsenals, a debate has arisen in Germany as to when the remaining ten to twenty nuclear weapons in the country should be taken out. Some argue they should be removed immediately as […]
Brothers Keepers’ Song “Triple Rois”
The song “Triple Rois” (Drei Koenige/Three Kings) contains the voices of three distinct cultures speaking from three distinct vantage points, yet all sharing the same message. This song speaks mainly to the disenfranchisement and alienation felt by those who do not feel that they fit into the dominant cultural paradigm of their country of residence. […]
Two conversations pt. 2: Merkel rebuffs call for Turkish schools in Germany
Soon after the Turkish Prime Minister’s call for fully-Turkish secondary schools to be established in Germany, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has come out to reject the PM’s plans, calling for integration through learning the German language and German customs. Many Turks in Germany have also denounced the Turkish PM’s plan, saying that it would hinder […]